‘Is it considered insufficiently woke to be merely gay?’: Helen Zille’s tweet stirs controversy

DA federal chairperson Helen Zille has sparked another social media controversy after asking whether gay people had to be transgender to be considered “woke”.  

In response to a tweet criticising American transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Zille said: “Is it now considered insufficiently ‘woke’ to be merely gay?"

"Must you be transgender to gain access to the inner sanctum of the ‘tribe’? And must you, in the process, trash and stereotype all women, eradicating the progress they have made to achieve equality over half a century?” she added. 

At first the term "woke" was often used to describe people who are open-minded or socially aware. Over time, it has used by others to mock.

The politician’s tweet sparked massive debate, with some accusing her of showing dislike towards transgender people. 

When asked if she wanted people to be transphobic, Zille said she did not.  

“The real outrage should be targeted at Dylan Mulvaney who ceaselessly undermines the dignity and rights women have fought for over decades. Read in context.” 

Former DA MP Phumzile van Damme weighed in, saying: “There is nothing liberal about demonising the trans community for choosing to live their lives according to their individual beliefs and demanding gender norms conformity.”

Others on the social media platform defended Zille, saying she must not be deterred by the backlash.  

Zille has been in the spotlight in the past for her Twitter posts.  Previously she came under fire for her tweet shaming a social media user for including her pronouns on her profile.

Zille suggested the concept of gender pronouns was “wokus-pokus”, telling the user, Alexandra Hayes, to '"lose” it.

Hayes posted about striving through her personal challenges and getting to a place where she was “happy, healthy and grateful to be alive and independent again”.

“Good for you. Wonderful story when people go to the depths of the abyss and find their way out again. Just lose those wokus-pokus pronouns,” Zille tweeted.

Here is how people reacted on social media:

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